Branko Šegota
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Branimir "Branko" Šegota (born June 8, 1961) is a Canadian former professional
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
forward, starring in the original Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL), the
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...
(NASL), the
Continental Indoor Soccer League The Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) was a professional indoor soccer league that played from 1993 to 1997. History In the summer of 1989 Dr Jerry Buss, the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and California Sports, told his executive Vice ...
(CISL), the National Professional Soccer League, and the
Canadian Soccer League The Canadian Soccer League (CSL; ) is a semi-professional league for Canadian soccer clubs primarily located in the province of Ontario, and claims the history of the Canadian National Soccer League (CNSL). It is a non-FIFA league previously ...
.


Club career

Born in
Rijeka Rijeka (; Fiume ( fjuːme in Italian and in Fiuman dialect, Fiuman Venetian) is the principal seaport and the List of cities and towns in Croatia, third-largest city in Croatia. It is located in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County on Kvarner Ba ...
, then part of
PR Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), commonly abbreviated as SR Croatia and referred to as simply Croatia, was a ...
,
FPR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...
, Branko Šegota moved with his family to Canada at the age of 7. Raised in
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
,
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, Šegota began his pro soccer career at age 17, signing with the
New York Arrows The New York Arrows were an indoor soccer team that played in the original Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992), Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) from 1978 to 1984. They were the MISL's first dynasty, winning the first four championships. H ...
of MISL. Before he began his indoor career he played in the
National Soccer League The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its ...
in 1978 with
Montreal Castors Montreal Castors was a Canadian Association football, soccer team, founded in 1975. The team played in the Canadian National Soccer League, National Soccer League, winning the championship in 1978 and 1979 before withdrawing from the league in 197 ...
. He was named NASL's North American player of the year in
1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
with the
Golden Bay Earthquakes Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...
. During his 18-year pro career he also played outdoors in the NASL in 1979 and 1980 with Rochester Lancers and from 1981 to 1983 with
Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994) The Fort Lauderdale Strikers were an American soccer team establishe ...
and several summers after that in the
Canadian Soccer League The Canadian Soccer League (CSL; ) is a semi-professional league for Canadian soccer clubs primarily located in the province of Ontario, and claims the history of the Canadian National Soccer League (CNSL). It is a non-FIFA league previously ...
with the
Toronto Blizzard Toronto Blizzard may refer to: *Toronto Blizzard (1971–1984), the original soccer club, a franchise of the North American Soccer League *Toronto Blizzard (1986–1993), the later club and franchise of the Canadian Soccer League *Toronto Azzurri B ...
. Šegota played winters in the MISL with the Arrows, San Diego Sockers from 1984 to 1985 through 1990–91, and
St. Louis Storm The St. Louis Storm was a soccer team based out of St. Louis, Missouri, St. Louis that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992), Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). They played from 1989 to 1992. Their home arena was the St. Louis ...
. He played indoors (in 1994 and 1995) for the Las Vegas Dustdevils of the CISL and as recently as 1997 for the
Baltimore Spirit The Baltimore Blast are an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, that competes in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). Including one championship victory as the original Baltimore Blast, the team has won 10 cha ...
of the National Professional Soccer League. Šegota scored 73 goals in 147 regular season NASL games to rank 13th in the history of the league. He also scored 12 goals in 13 play-off games, including 11 in the 1981 play-offs. In the history of the original
MISL Major Indoor Soccer League has been the name of three different American professional indoor soccer leagues: *Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992), known in its final two seasons as the Major Soccer League *Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2 ...
he ranked second in career goal and points scoring with 463 goals and 841 points. His 378 assists ranks him third. His being nine MISL championship teams, three with the Arrows and 6 with the Sockers is also a record. He was a five-time MISL all-star.


International career

Šegota earned 20 caps for
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
including appearances as a substitute in all 3 of the country's
1986 World Cup The 1986 FIFA World Cup was the 13th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June 1986. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had ...
games. He played for Canada at the
1979 FIFA World Youth Championship The 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship, the second staging of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA World Youth Championship, was held in Japan from 26 August to 7 September 1979. It was the first FIFA tournament played in Asia. The tournament took place i ...
, scoring twice in a 3–1 win over Portugal. He earned his first senior cap in a 1–1 World Cup qualifying draw against
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
in 1980. Šegota scored three goals in his 20 appearances. His final cap came in a 3–2 win over
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
in a World Cup qualifier in 1988. He was inducted into the
Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame honours people and institutions for their contributions to Canadian soccer. It was founded in 1997 by the Ontario Soccer Association and was originally located in Vaughan, Ontario. As of 2024, the Canada Soccer Ha ...
in 2002.


International goals

:''Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first.''


Coaching career

Šegota served as an assistant coach with the
Cleveland Internationals Cleveland Internationals was an American soccer team based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. Founded in 2004, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Great Lakes Divisio ...
of the
Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...
in 2004 after coaching their youth program for 6 years. He has three children, Ashley, Toni, and Emma, with his wife Ena Šegota.


References


External links

* * /
Canada Soccer Hall of Fame The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame honours people and institutions for their contributions to Canadian soccer. It was founded in 1997 by the Ontario Soccer Association and was originally located in Vaughan, Ontario. As of 2024, the Canada Soccer Ha ...

NASL/MISL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Segota, Branko 1961 births Living people Baltimore Spirit players Canada men's international soccer players Canada Soccer Hall of Fame inductees Canadian National Soccer League players Canadian Soccer League (1987–1992) players Canadian men's soccer players Canadian expatriate men's soccer players Canada men's youth international soccer players Croatian emigrants to Canada 1986 FIFA World Cup players Men's association football forwards Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983) players Indoor soccer players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players Montreal Castors players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players Naturalized citizens of Canada North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players New York Arrows players Soccer players from Toronto Footballers from Rijeka St. Louis Storm players Rochester Lancers (1967–1980) players San Diego Sockers (1978–1996) indoor players San Jose Earthquakes (1974–1988) players Toronto Blizzard (1986–1993) players Continental Indoor Soccer League players Las Vegas Dustdevils players Yugoslav emigrants to Canada USL League Two coaches Cleveland Internationals Canadian soccer coaches 20th-century Canadian sportsmen